A Teachable Heart

“For people who hate discipline and only get more stubborn, There’ll come a day when life tumbles in and they break, but by then it’ll be too late to help them.”

- Proverbs 29:1 MSG

There are few things more important than maintaining a teachable heart if we are going to continue to grow in Christ. How ready are we to learn? To realise we can always do better, be better, know more. Unfortunately one of the biggest symptoms of getting comfortable in the presence of God, is we begin to think that we know all there is to know about Him.

There is a point we get to where if we consistently disregard the wisdom of God, His consistently outstretched hand of redemption you will pay the price. the scripture above says, if you continually refuse to receive or be open to correction, and instead refuse to turn away you will lead yourself to your own demise.

“Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to yourelders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for
“God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.””

- 1 Peter 5:5 NKJV

We are in a time where there is so much attack on spiritual leadership, people are running away from church, and fellowship. it is a dangerous thing when we get to a place where we believe that we can build ourselves in Christ and refuse the wisdom of others, the bible says “…iron sharpens iron.”. that is not to say that the only place where you can grow in wisdom is in the church, or from “Men of God”, but fellowship is essential, it is also essential that we remain teachable, ready to learn, open to the possibility that God can use an infant to speak to you just as easily as He could use as pastor. This requires discernment and the capacity to always check in with the Spirit, but never let yourself get to a place where you think someone isn’t worth listening g to because you know better than them, it will surprise who God will use and how He will use them. It is why we must remember that, His ways are not our ways.

“And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.”

- 2 Chronicles 36:15-16 NKJV

The moment we become unteachable, we stunt our growth. One of the biggest killers of teachability is pride. It creeps in so slyly, the idea that it is by how long I’ve done to church, when I gave my life to Christ that makes me a fount of wisdom. Or that someone because of the social standing can not be privy to the level of knowledge that you are. It is why Christ consistently reminds us to be dead to self. It is not by our strength or power but by His Spirit. The moment we think it is because of who we our, or it is our wisdom, our righteousness we become rapidly, more and more unteachable. It is all by the measure of the Spirit, and because you did nothing to earn the Spirit of God, you didn’t get grade a spirit and someone else got grade d. God is God and His Spirit is His Spirit. The worse kind of pride is the one that camouflages itself as humility, when you believe you are so humbled by God, you don’t want to be guided by anyone that isn’t as humbled by Him as you are.

It is as important, if not more so to be as open to rebuke as we are to praise.

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor detest His correction;
For whom the Lord loves He corrects,
Just as a father the son in whom he delights. “

- Proverbs 3:11-12 NKJV

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,”

- 2 Timothy 3:16 NIV